How would Jesus introduce Himself? Most folks have heard of him, at least as a historical figure, but who does He say He is? How would He describe who He is to people don’t necessarily know or understand Him? Have you met Jesus? Meet Him! He’s pretty amazing. In the Gospel of John, Jesus makes seven statements introducing Himself in various ways to us, each starting with “I am…” Each of these statements involves a different way He relates Himself to you and me. All of them are quite tangible for us to have a better picture and understanding of who He is and who He claims to be. Of course Jesus says many other things about Himself through Scripture, but these seven word pictures are quite intriguing. 1. I am the Bread of Life (John 6:35-51)"Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst." (John 6:35) Why do we eat bread? Because we’re hungry! Our physical bodies need food to live. Our souls are hungry too, and Jesus says He is the bread that fills that hunger and gives life to our spirit. 2. I am the Light of the World (John 8:12)“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.’” We need light to see, to live life effectively, and to appreciate the beauty of the world around us. Without it, we stumble around in the darkness. While we can manage to get through this life blind (some people don’t have a choice in the matter), when you can see, it opens up a whole new dimension to life! Light shines on things in the darkness – if you have to crawl into a dark attic or crawlspace, you definitely want to have a flashlight to avoid obstacles and creepy crawlies. Jesus not only shines light on the world around us, but He shines light on our own hearts. That’s why some people hate Him – they don’t want the sin in their hearts to be revealed, and Jesus infringes upon their comfort zones. But that’s what He does – He exposes what’s in the darkness with His light. 3. I am the Door (John 10:7-9) “So Jesus said to them again, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.’” In this chapter, Jesus is speaking metaphorically about entering through Him, the “door,” to find abundant life. He is not just “a” door, but “the” door. We have to come through Him to find life in God, just as He says later in John 14:6, “no one comes to the Father but through Me.” 4. I am the Good Shepherd (John 10:11) “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.” The full context of the chapter talks about how hired hands run from the wolf that would do harm to the sheep, but Jesus as the Shepherd is willing to lay down His life for us, because we are His, and He loves us as His own. A shepherd’s job is to protect the sheep, guide them to safety, feed them, pasture them, and find them when they wander off. That’s what Jesus does for us. 5. I am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25)When Jesus was talking with Martha after her brother Lazarus died, He made this statement to her: “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.” Later, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, as proof that He had power over life and death! We will all die a physical death, but the kind of life Jesus is talking about is an eternal spiritual life. He gives us that life – He is that life. Most of us understand eternal life to be heaven (as opposed to eternal death in hell), but it is more than that. According to Jesus in John 17:30, “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” Eternal life does mean spending eternity in heaven with God, but it starts earlier than that when you begin a relationship with Him now and experience a new life within yourself that He gives you! 6. I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6)“Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.'” This statement, more than any other, renders false the idea that “all paths lead to God.” Jesus didn’t say that He is “a way” or “a truth,” but “the way” and “the truth.” He claims to be the only way to God. Either He is right and all other religions are wrong, or other religions are right, and Jesus was wrong. But they can’t both be true; it just doesn’t work. Jesus made Christianity different from any other religion, because He didn’t just teach us to follow a way or a set of teachings; rather He said He “is” the way. The only way. 7. I am the Vine (John 15:5)“I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” Jesus is saying that He is our source. Our nourishment, strength, and very life come from Him, just as a branch draws those things from the main vine. If we are not connected to Christ, we cannot survive, particularly in a spiritual sense, but since He created us and gives us breath, also in a physical sense. One more “I am"All of these seven statements start with “I am.” Jesus also makes an eighth statement in John 8:58 about Himself that is simply “I am.” What does this mean? This one is less tangible, but it’s huge. With this statement, Jesus is making a claim to his eternal nature, and more importantly, He’s making a claim to divinity, a claim to be God Almighty! How do we know this? Read this heated little dialogue that Jesus had with a group of Jews in John 8:39-58: Jews: Abraham is our father. Jesus: If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. You are doing the deeds of your father. Jews: We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God. Jesus: If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God. Jews: Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon? Jesus: I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death. Jews: Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.’ Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be? Jesus: If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’; and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad. Jews: You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham? Jesus: Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am. And then it says, “Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.” The Jews whom Jesus was talking with tried to stone Him because they understood Jesus’s reference when He said, “before Abraham was born, I am.” He was referring to a passage in Exodus 3:13-15, when God speaking to Moses announced that His name was “I AM.” Jesus in that statement was making Himself out to be God, and the Jews wanted to stone Him for blasphemy. So that's Jesus!Jesus makes some pretty radical claims about Himself, and He also makes it very apparent that He loves us and wants to be our everything. Most of these statements equate Jesus with life itself, and Jesus claims to be the unique and only way to God. In fact, He claims to be God Himself.
Early in the book of John, it is written that “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God," (John 1:1) and a few verses later it says, “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). Jesus was God in the flesh, born of the virgin Mary, who came to be the bridge between God and man. Jesus said, “He who has seen Me, has seen the Father.” (John 14:9) God made Himself reachable and tangible in the person of Jesus. Want to know God? Meet Jesus. He already knows you, loves you, and came to give His life for you!
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AuthorFull time office worker, full time wife, and full time lover of Jesus. I'm kind of a Bible nerd, and I have a passion for finding ways to introduce Jesus in a practical way to everyday people doing everyday things. Archives
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